


Doubt

by interstellartreasure



Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Character Death, but im not focusing too much on the Painful Details of that death in this one, if uve watched tcw you know what i mean, like i said u mostly just get a peek into fox's head, there's rex and fives too; but this mainly focuses on how fox is coping, this is based near the end of the conspiracy arc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-03
Packaged: 2020-11-22 14:29:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20875739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/interstellartreasure/pseuds/interstellartreasure
Summary: main character here is fox!this takes place near the end of the conspiracy arc. it's my own take on That Scene because im in denial any clone would actually intentionally do that to a brotherbasically:blaster: is still set to stunfox: [laughing nervously] what the fuck?





	Doubt

Fox ordered the squad to run in as Fives was distracted, but the clone wasn't gone enough to _not_ notice them. He quickly reached for blasters set aside- ones which must’ve been Captain Rex’s. Fox aimed at him, commanding him to not attack. Fives raised them toward the others regardless. Fox did the only thing he could; he shot.

The blaster dropped, but when Fox glanced back up at Fives, he froze in place.

“Fives!” Rex cried out his brother’s name desperately as the clone fell. Fox felt numb as Fives struggled to find his breath.

General Skywalker ordered Fox to remove the ray shield, and he shot it too. He tried to snap himself out of it, tried to block out the sounds of the other clone _dying_. He could feel the confusion of the others, the slow hatred stemming from what personal treason he committed.

His shaky hands held his blaster close, and, same as before, it was set to stun. This couldn’t be possible.

Rex demanded something of them, falling beside Fives’ wounded body. Fox couldn’t register what he asked for; he couldn’t quite register _any_ of this as real.

One shot. It wasn’t supposed to _kill_ him.

Even if the Chancellor himself commanded Fox--face to face--to kill another clone, he would never go through with it. Not unless they posed a threat or were a deserter. Here? Fives obviously wasn’t either. He _meant_ to come back, he was talking to his _General _again, to his _Captain_. It wasn’t until he saw Fox come in that he (quite reasonably) attempted to arm himself. Fives wasn’t going to stay away from the 501st forever--anyone with sense would realize that upon seeing this scene. The sight of the Coruscant guard resparked Fives' panic, that was all. That was the only reason he dared to reach for weapons. The ray shield was to guarantee his _own_ protection _from_ the others. He was frightened, but not dangerous.

Fox felt nauseous. Fives hadn’t even been _near_ the blasters before he interrupted. Fives was never planning on shooting _until_ Fox interfered.

His doubts finally seeped in. Was Fives was even trying to kill the Chancellor prior to the chase? Or did he make plan on harming Palpatine just enough to safely escape? Was this “assassination attempt” simply to convince them that Fives was actively a threat who 'deserved' death? Was this supposed “stun” setting a fail-safe, then? Why would they-

No.

No, these thoughts were ridiculous. As uneasy as the situation made him, Fox had no right to doubt those he worked under.

“_Fives_, don’t go…” Rex's voice was _shaking_.

It took everything in Fox to not break with the captain.

He gripped his blaster tighter in an attempt to hide how his hands, too, were quivering. While he could take in the reality of the situation--Fives was going to die by his hand--he didn’t understand _how_ this began. He needed to understand how, if not why, so he could properly smother these traitorous thoughts.

The Chancellor wouldn’t _lie_ to him; there was no need to. Conceal information, yes, if the commander were ever caught they didn’t want to risk losing everything for a clone's mistake. But they certainly wouldn't lie to Fox's face to get him to go through with... this.

_You followed orders,_ a voice murmured gently, as if it were trying to soothe him, _that’s all we ask of a good soldier._

Fox tore off his helmet, refusing to listen much more of it. He opened his mouth, but bit back whatever comfort he wanted to give to Rex. He knew the captain wouldn’t accept any of it. To Rex, Fox was--and would remain--the one who heartlessly murdered his close _vod'ika_.

Even without the helmet, he felt as if he were suffocating. In Fox’s own squad’s eyes, it must’ve appeared intentional. He heard them slowly remove their helmets and could only guess at the bitter words _they _kept back. Even knowing the truth, he felt like a monster; he could only imagine how tense the others were with their perspectives.

The Chancellor would be fine with this result, of course.

Fives' death may even be celebrated, if it wasn’t completely swept under the rug. ARC Trooper 5555 would only be remembered as a nameless traitor.

But that wasn’t the case at all, else Fives wouldn’t even bother to speak with those two once they were trapped. A traitor would've simply killed them in that vulnerable state, hoping to damage the Republic.

No, Fives was still loyal to his Republic. He was trying to help it, _somehow._

How? How could a _clone_ of all things stumble upon anything of significance?

Well, no one would know now.

The commander doubted Rex would relay what Fives was trying to say now that the consequence of spreading this information appeared to be death, let alone convey it to the... murderer.

Fox's blood ran cold at that word. In its truth, it tore his heart apart.

Even if his blaster _did_ stun like it was meant to, he shouldn’t have shot at all. He may not bear the label of 'traitor' to the Republic, but among his own, he would never be trusted again. As Fives' breath faded, he choked back a worthless apology. Nothing would change the shameful reality of what he'd done. There was no use to try.

Fives finally died, in Rex’s arms, by Fox’s mistake.

“No.” Rex's quiet words were strained with pain. He hopelessly held Fives' limp body. Fox's squad moved from behind him, meeting Rex as his voice broke. “_Oh_, no…”

Then it all went silent.

But even in this silence, Fox was overwhelmed with guilt. No one was supposed to die in this retrieval. If they did die, it'd be on Kamino. He made it a point to remind the squad to stun this time, only to be revealed a hypocrite.

He knew at least one of his _vod'e_ looked back at him, their burning hatred only restrained by a stronger fear. He couldn’t blame them. 

Every clone has since accepted the fact they'd never fit with natborns, but it was a given, no matter the situation, they would always have each other's support and protect one another.

It was only right he'd be forced to break from this solidarity. _He_ was the threat to the faith they've built up over these cruel years.

However unintentional, the reality remained: Fox mercilessly murdered a brother.

If he ever had a chance of erasing the formality his _vod'e_ felt they must uphold among commanding officers, it was gone now. He could imagine, even among his fellow commanders, he wouldn't be as easily accepted as before. Cody would provide Rex solace, and, following this, others would certainly realize what Fox had done and leave him behind.

Already, he understood how the situation must follow, but simply understanding wouldn't erase the crushing dread as it played out.

**Author's Note:**

> tl;dr  
fox: i am the best at everything, including hating myself.
> 
> if ur interested in following me im @cisphobicfives on tumblr!


End file.
